Lion's Mane Jellyfish

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Lion’s Mane Jellyfish

(Cyanea capillata), a large marine jellyfish of the class Scyphozoa. The margin of the umbrella, or bell, has eight double lobes, and the tentacles are gathered into eight bundles. The coloration is usually very bright: the umbrella is yellowish red, the mouth lobes are raspberry, and the tentacles are pink. The diameter of the umbrella varies from a few centimeters to 2 m; the tentacles, when extended, may reach a length of 40 m. The tentacles bear a large number of stinging cells, or nematocysts, which are used for both offensive and defensive purposes. The fry of haddock and other gadoid fishes often swim between the tentacles for protection from predators. The lion’s mane jellyfish is distributed in the northern parts of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, as well as in seas of the Arctic Ocean.

Brodeur (1998) observed juveniles swimming near the bells of scyphomedusae Cyanea capillata and Chrysaora melanaster and retreating behind the tentacles or within the bells of these jellyfish when approached by a remotely operated vehicle, apparently as a means of protection from predators.

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